Residents question environmental impact assessment released for controversial Parlee campground
Assessment looked at various environmental, economic factors from campground construction
Residents along the Shediac Bay question the timing of an environmental impact assessment for a controversial Parlee Beach campground development, two days after the government announced preventative measures to avoid worsening water conditions in the area.
On Wednesday, the government announced it will spend $3 million on Parlee Beach infrastructure and studies aimed at improving water quality.
The beach was also declared a "unique feature of the environment," which means developments that might have an impact on water quality trigger an automatic review by the Department of Environment and Local Government to see if an environmental impact assessment is necessary.
Last summer, fecal bacteria levels at Parlee Beach were high enough on 45 days to pose a health risk to children and the elderly. But beachgoers and residents were only informed the water quality was poor on 28 days.
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Timing is 'staggering'
Natasha Bell, a resident of Cap-Pelé and a member of the Save Wetlands Waters and Tourism Coalition, said she was aghast that the assessment for the campground development was released only 48 hours after the government's announcement.
"Here we have an EIA registration document that has been ripe in the past with political alliances," she said. "I think the timing is just staggering."
The campground is controversial, in part because Health Minister Victor Boudreau is one of seven investors trying to develop the site. But residents of the area are also concerned because the site sits on what they suspect to be wetland.
The assessment, which looked at various environmental and economic factors impacted by the construction of the campground and possible mitigations, did not include a physical wetland delineation.
On Wednesday, the government announced that it will fund an independent wetland survey for Parlee Beach. Bell said the government returned a call with a member of her group on Friday confirming that two wetland delineations will take place on the site, one independent and one as part of the EIA.
A spokesperson for the Department of Environment and Local Government confirmed later that the site is within the area that will undergo wetland delineation.
Storm water run-offs another concern
Tim Borlase, who owns a home in Pointe-du-Chêne and is president of a concerned citizens group called the Red Dot Association Shediac Bay, said the group also worries about storm water run-offs from the site.
The proposed campground is expected to offer 600 to 700 sites, as well as a pool and splash pad, playground and other recreational areas, a grocery store, a Laundromat and washroom facility.
The assessment said that sewage from the campground can be serviced by an existing sanitary sewer line that connects with the city's sewer system. Since the project will be serviced by municipal water and sewer systems, the potential for release of sewage from the campground facility will diminish, the assessment said.
The project is also expected to include plans for grading and storm water management, so floodwaters can be collected until they can be safely discharged.
But Borlase said there are other factors, such as oil from cars and dog feces that could run off from the site and affect water quality.
"It's going to go right into the sea," he said.
Borlase was also concerned about a walking trail to the north of the development. The assessment mentions the trail because it creates another barrier for storm water between the campground and adjoining wetland.
The trail, however, was built on wetland in violation of the Clean Environment Act and is awaiting inspection by the Department of Environment, said Borlase.
The next step
The EIA will now undergo a determination review aimed at "identifying and evaluating the environmental issues surrounding the proposed project," a spokesperson for the Department of Environment and Local Government wrote in an e-mail Friday.
The developer must also show that the public and other stakeholders affected by the project had the opportunity to become involved in reviewing the project, "and must indicate how the proponent has considered or addressed any resultant questions and concerns."
Following this process, the minister can either allow the development to proceed "subject to conditions imposed to protect the environment," deny development, or ask for a more detailed review, the email said.
Residents along Shediac Bay, however, maintain that their preferred option remains a moratorium on developments until the source of the water contamination is determined.
"We are asking for things to just slow down, let's take a look at what we are doing," said Bell.